NEW YORK, NY (December 3, 2009) – Schrödinger announced today that it has begun a collaborative research project with Novira Therapeutics, Inc. to discover novel small molecules that block assembly of key antiviral targets. Schrödinger will apply its drug design platform, including both ligand- and structure-based approaches, to identify novel lead compounds.

 "We are very pleased to be working with Schrödinger on these projects," said Dr. Osvaldo Flores, Chief Scientific Officer of Novira Therapeutics. "Schrödinger has a proven track record in successfully applying its computational platform to drug discovery, and we are confident that through this collaboration, we can significantly accelerate our projects."

Schrödinger recently announced that it had reached a significant milestone in a separate research collaboration with Solvay Pharmaceuticals. Reflecting on recent and current projects, Schrödinger's President, Dr. Ramy Farid said, "We're very pleased that Novira has chosen to work with us, and we're happy to add these exciting new projects to our rapidly growing portfolio of research collaborations." Dr. Farid adds, "It's very rewarding to see our technologies being effectively applied and having a measurable impact on so many diverse discovery efforts."

 

About Schrödinger

Schrödinger is a scientific leader in developing state-of-the-art chemical simulation software for use in pharmaceutical and biotechnology research. The Company provides products ranging from general molecular modeling programs to a full-featured suite of drug design software using both ligand- and structure-based methods. The predictive power of Schrödinger's software allows scientists to accelerate their research and development activities, reduce research costs, and make novel discoveries that might not be possible otherwise, which are enabled through the Company’s breakthroughs in the fields of quantum chemistry, molecular modeling, drug design, and protein structure determination. Schrödinger operates from locations in New York, Oregon, California, Germany, and the UK. For more information, please visit www.schrodinger.com.

About Novira Therapeutics

Novira is a private, early-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of first-in-class antiviral agents that disrupt viral assembly. The company is building an exciting pipeline of drug candidates targeting HIV and Hepatitis B infection using an innovative discovery platform utilizing functional viral assembly assays and computationally-assisted medicinal design leveraged through the expertise of leading strategic CRO and academic partners. Novira is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Contact:
Shi-Yi Liu
(503) 299-1150
Shi-Yi.Liu@schrodinger.com